Motor-vehicle top



Patented June 18, 1929.

GRANT IINTON, or NEW Yonx, n. Y. i

Moron-VEHICLE rfrei?.A i

i `Application leil .Tune 14,

This invention has relationfto motor vehicle tops and refers more particularly to atop for motor cars of the sport model type.'

Among theoutstanding objects of the present invention, is the provision of motor vehicle top of conventional aerofoil type, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which acts substantially as a wind shield owing to the well known tendency of this type of surface, evenat a slight inclination, to deflect a portion of the air over the upper surface, whereby the driver and other occupants of the vehicle are given an unobstructed view.

a conventional wing-like structure designed to obtain reaction -upon its surfaces from the air through which itmoves, and which has the further related'iproperty ofy decreasing the velocity of the air flow at the under side and increasingiit at the upper sidewith a minimum disturbance of and resistance to the air. yBy craerofoil section, as hereinafter used, is meant a section of the aerofoil made by a plane parallelto the plane of ksymmetry of the aerofoil.` f

The invention furthermore contemplates a motor vehicletop which operates to effect a minimum `disturbance' to theair, by ycon-y verting an otherwise turbulent flow about the cock pit to astream line flow, whereby a substantial reduction in the overallrhead resistance of the vehicle isfobtained. f

As a further object the invention comprehends an improvement in motor vehicle tops,

which affords protect-ion to the occupants of f a vehicle from the sun, air, or other elements, and this without in any way detracting from the speed line appearance of the vehicle, but rather enhancing the same.

As a still further object the invention com prehends a means for mounting the top which renders it capable of ready attachment to or detachment from the vehicle, and which further constitutes a means for moving the top -to facilitate the entrance'or exit of the occupants.

The invention furthermore comprehends a vehicle top for motor cars which is comparatively simple in its construction, inexpensive In the drawings- `.Flgurel is a fragmentarylongitudinal By aerofoil, as hereinafter used, is meant n an `automobile y1924. 'semaine'. 720,016.

to manufacture and installpand which is highly eflicientin its purpose'.

- VVithtl'iey above yrecited and other objects in "View, the ,invention resides in the novel construction set forth in the following specithe right is reserved to embodimentsother.

than those'actually illustrated hereiny to the full extent indicated by the general meaning of the terms in which the claims are eX- pressed. i i

sectional view through equipped wlth a top constructed in accord yance with the invention. y y y Fig. 2 1s aplan view on a reduced scale -of the frame of the top with the covering removed.

onthe line indicated at n 3 is adetail enlarged sectional view ytaken"approximately on the line indicated at '3-3inFig.l." i 'i taken approximately onthe lineiindicated at .y Fig. 6 is a conventional 'side view illustrating an automobile having` front and rear seats equipped withtops rconstructedin accordance with the inventioni" Referring lto the drawings by characters of reference, A designates the cock pit of an y automobile, B the cowl, C the cowl dash, and

D thek dash@ The top'constituting they inventionis of conventional aerofoil type, and as such 1s designated at l0 as presentlng an up-` per surface llhaving a `c'onvex-parabolic form at the outer-'side with the vertex of th-e i parabola near the leading edge,and a generally concave lowersurface l2 contiguous at its edges with tlieedges of the upper surface '11. In regard yto the lower surface ofthe top, it is well known that the particular shape `of the"lowerfsurface of an aerofoil is rela-k tively unimportant7 kand that it is the upper substantially kparabolic surface which is esof the car to which the topjis applied.

sential toeicient action. In conformance with this fact,rthe lower surface of the top may, for structural reasons, be made'flat or even slightly convex. The trailing edge of ythe top also may be bent slightly upward, as

in some standard aerofoils. The degree of curvature, the'taper, grading, plan form, etc., are made to conform generally to the lines the present instance the top 10 will preferably consist of a framework comprising a cross beam 13 Vof any suitable material'havlegs 17 ofwhich define the side edges. rl`he e rear free ends of the legs 17 and the ribs 1% will be connected byga connecting element 18 suchas pianowire,while the forward ends of the ribs 14e will kbe suitably connected withthe `bight V16.A The frame will then preferably be covered .by a doped fabric'19 which provides the upperandlower surfaces 11 and 12 Lof the topstructure. The means for supporting ormounting the top on the'vehicle.preferably includes a single rearwardly inclined stream lined strut 2O secured by upper and rlower brackets 21 and 22 respectively to the` l cowl dash C and the true dash D.l The upper endI of the strut is, .bifurcated v or `provided with a forked bearing element 23 presenting aligned apertured furcations or bearing ears i 24. vAn attaching element 9.5 (of substantially inverted U`shaped formation havingspaced knuckles 9.6A formed with aligned apertures is secured to the'.k underside of the top `10 by meansof bolts 27 which extend through the `loearinfT element and thevcrossbeam L3. A

transverse pivot boltQS is Yinserted through theknuckles 26 and bearing ears o f furcations Q-eljwhereby the top'is connected with the strut 2O for pivotalinovement and furtherto .per`

mit of quick detachment of the topfrem the strut when it is desiredto remove thesame. ln order toprovide means forV swinging the top on its pivot 28 to adjust the angle of incidence or facilitate theentrance or exit of the occupants of the vehicle, theattaching element is preferably formed with anin-` tegral rearwardly projecting arm 30, the major portion of the free end of which is bent downwardlyas at31r to provide a manipulating handle orlever to be grasped by the oper ator for swinging the top 10 onits pivot. In order to provide means to maintain the top in variously adjusted positions, the free end of the handle 31 is provided with a suitable `spring-presseddetent 32 engageable withthe teeth 35 of a quadrant S4 which is attached to the strutQO. l

In use the configuration ofthe freelysus- Apended vehicletop 10 serves toy react effectively on the air upon forward movement, of

Vtrue relative speed, but will be in the square of this ratio, in accordance with the wellknown fact that the dynamic pressure effects Y by converting the otherwiseturbulent flow` with a Yconsequent reduction in the overall head resistance of the vehicle when in motion.

The mounting of the top in the manner here` tofore described further serves to permit of adjustment of the same to obtain the desired angle yof incidence ofthe top whereby it will function to the best advantage and furthermore to facilitate the entrance and exit of the passengers or occupants of the vehicle.

ln Fig. 6 there is diagrammatically illustrated rthe application oftops of the character set forth to thefront and rear seats of ahve-seated vehicle and in which the construction 'and operation is substantially .the same as that hereinbefore described.

4Iclaim: fr. Y

Y 1. In .amotor vehicle, yan'aerofoil shaped top,a strut adapted. to-have its lower end and means for adjusting the top, said means comprising a lever secured tothe top, and locking ymeans for the lever. j 1 Y 2. In a inotorvehicle, a strut having a bifurcatled upper end and adapted to have the lower end secured to the vehicle body, an aerofoil shapedtop, a member having spaced knuckles secured to the under side of the top, atk the longitudinal vcenter and in front of vcenter of length thereof, .a bolt..passing through said bifurcations and knuckles, and

means secured to said member for adjustingat the longitudinal center and in front of the `center of length, a bolt passing through said bifurcations and knuckles, a lever having Va bent upper endsecured to saidmember, vthe lever extending downwardly in close proximity to the strut,kr a spring detent carried top, and means for pivoting the upper end by the level', and a toothed quadrant securedy of the strut to theunder sidefof the top at 10 i to the strut and with which the detent enthe longitudinal center and at the side of the gages. center of length of the top, and a manually 4l. The Combination With iL SpOlt mOOl operated levell for adjusting the inclination emr, of a rearwardly inclined strut having of the top. v its lower end secured to the transverse center f of the body of the oar, an aerofoil shaped y GRANT LINTON. 

